“I want to lose a lot of weight.” “I want to make some real money this year.” “I’m going to spend more time doing the things I love to do.”

All of these goals sound like great ways to start out the New Year. Yet, each one is doomed for failure. How can this be?

The top reasons that most New Year’s resolutions fail is because they are 1) either too vague and ambiguous or 2) they are too ambitious to be reasonably achieved.

In Part II of our series, we discussed the importance of beginning with the end in mind and working backwards to create specific benchmarks that can be tracked and monitored. It is through this systematic method that you will achieve real results. Otherwise, it’s far too easy to lose focus and drift back into bad habits.

By this age, many of us have mastered the fine art of self-deception. We can, and often do, fool ourselves into believing we are making real and positive changes. If we don’t devise a method to keep an eye on our progress, then we usually won’t end up where we want to be.

The same is true for setting goals that are either too large-scale, too time-consuming, or too energy intense. If our objectives are overly ambitious, we will only get discouraged and eventually give up. Going from being a couch potato to vowing to exercise an hour a day is a sure-fire recipe for failure.

Some of you may have heard of the acronym, SMART, when referring to setting goals. This stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time Targeted. As you design your action plan for 2008, try to think in terms of setting SMART goals. Then set your benchmarks and track your progress.

It is by taking small, actionable steps, ones that can be checked and monitored, that you can and will make life-altering changes that keep you motivated and achieve the results you want.

4 Responses to “Women Over Fifty—Success In ‘08, Part IV”

Thanks for the reminder. There’s a huge difference between a “resolution” and a “goal”. Setting specific, measurable achieveable, and realistic goals is the first step to make your resolution a reality.

Here is another idesa to keep in mind that I found beneficial.
The idea of above the line and below the line.
O = Ownership
A = Accountability
R = Responsibility
The Line __________________________
B = Blame others
E = Excuses
D = Denial
If things go wrong you can accept responsibility and start rowing the boat in the direction you want. You can accept accountability for what went wrong, and you can take responsibility for your life.
Or you can go to bed and sulk. Blame others, make excuses and deny responsibility. It’s your choice.

You raise some good points. I might add that another reason I think people fail is because there’s no FOLLOW THROUGH. Some people start out gung ho about an idea but when they get half way through and run into stumbling blocks they give up.

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